Juvenile vehicle.



H. E. MOOMAW.

JUVENILE VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-9,1918.

Patented J 11116 11, 1918. I

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

avwemtoz chroma H. E. MOOMAW.

JUVENILE VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.9,1918.

1,269, 1 07 v Patented June 11, 1918.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

OFFICE.

HENRY E. HOOMAW, OF SALEM, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOB TO JOHN E. ANNIS, OF CHATTA- NOOGA, TENNESSEE.

JUVENILE VEHICLE.

Specification 01' Letters Patent. Patented June 11, 1918.

Application filed January 9, 1918. Serial No. 211,039.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY E. Moonsw, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Salem, county of Roanoke, State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Juvenile Vehicles, of which the following is a full and clear specification.

My invention has relation to that class of coaster cars adapted to be used by children and which may be propelled ,by them by standing upon the car and using one foot to propel or push the car around.

An object of my invention is to provide a car of the character described which may be made of sheet metal and which will be strong and durable and able to withstand the rough usage common to cars of this type.

Other objects will appear hereinafter in the specification and drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved car showing the seat in its folded position in dotted lines;

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view;

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal fragmentary section taken on line -14 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal fragmentary section taken on line 5-45 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a transverse fragmentary section taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a transverse section taken on line 7-7 of Fig. 2.

In the drawings, B indicates the body portion of my improved car which is made preferably of sheet metal. The body is bent in a substantially inverted U shape, thereby providing a floor portion 1 and depending side flanges 2.

At the rear end of the body, transversely thereof and upon the flanges 2. are the rear wheels or rollers \V. Extending transversely of the car and through the flanges 2, I provide a rod 3. Upon this rod and intermediate the flanges 12. I provide a spacing or bracing sleeve 4 composed of three tubular sections 1*. 4*, 1. suitable ball-bearing rollers or wheels 5 being mounted for rotation upon the sleeves 1 and 4. The outer ends of the bracing or spacing sleeve. -2'. (2.. the outer ends of the sections 4* and 4. abut the depending flanges :2 at 6 and cooperate with nuts 7 threaded upon the outer ends of the rod 3 to securely brace and space the depending flanges 2 and tie the spacing sleeves together.

It will be seen that by this structure, I utilize the rear axle to tie together the flange members and to securely brace the car.

T o correspondingly brace the forward end of the car, I provide a transverse rod 8 having a head 9 cooperating with a nut 10, which rod passes through the flanges :2 and securely holds the same rigid. Mounted upon this rod is a brake block 11, the rod 8 passing through ears 1:! formed'upon the block by bifureating the same. A spring 13 is coiled around the rod 8 and between the ears 12 of the block, one end bearing upon the bottom of the body B and the other uponthe block 11, thus maintaining the block in a raised position out of engagement with the ground. A pedal 14 passes through an opening in the body B and extends a distance above the same and has its lower end secured to the block 11. It is obvious that when it is desired to stop the car or retard its travel, the pedal 11 may be depressed with the foot against the tension of the spring 13 to thus bring the block 11 into engagement with the ground.

For steering the car, I provide a steering device S which consists of a rod 15 provided with an operating handle 16 at its upper end and a U-shaped wheel-supporting member 17 at its lower end. For suitably bracing the rod 15 above the body, I provide a housing 18. A cotter-pin 19 passing through the rod 15 and bearing upon the top of the housing 18 prevents vertical movement of the rod 15 in one direction with respect to the housing 18.

The housing 18 terminates at its lower end in a base flange 20 which rests upon the floor 1 of the body B and cooperates with a plate 21 to securely clamp the housing 18 and the body B together. Suitable fastening means. such as bolts 22, may be emplo ved. The plate 21 also acts as a bearing plate for the U-shaped wheel-supporting member 17.

The rod 15 passes through the member 17 and is screw-threaded to receive a locking plate :23. This plate is squared at its ends so as to bear squarely against the perpendicular sides of the U-shaped clip 17, as

. looking plate 23 and consequently the wheel adjustably-mounted saddle 3i.

or roller-supporting member 17 'Transversely mounted in the wheel-supporting member is an axle 28 which carries a spacing element 29 formed in three sections 29, 29 and 29. The intermediate section 29 is mounted with its outer ends hearing against the depending sides of the U- .shaped supporting member. thus spacing the same, while the two outer sections 29 and 29 are mounted so as to bear against the outer faces of the depending sides of the U-shaped member. A head and nut 30 and 31, respectively, upon the axle 28 cotiperate to clamp the sections together and to seeurely brace the roller-sup orting member.

Suitable ball-bearing rolFers or wheels 32 are mounted for rotation upon the sections 29 and 29.

A seat T is provided adjacent the rear end of the car and comprises a supporting rod 33 curved at its upper end to support an For supporting the seat in its upright position and for allowing it to be folded to its inoperative position, I provide a seat-locking member 35 secured to the bottom of the body B by suitable bolts 36.

This seat-locking member comprises a U- shaped housing provided with flanges 37 for securing it to the body B. The housing at its lower end has an opening 38 formed by cutting it on three sides and bending the lip so formed upwardly to form a guide and stop 39 to guide the lower end of the rod 33 into the opening 38. To pivotally support and to allow vertical movement of the rod 33, T provide a pin 40 which works in slots 41 formed in the vertical sides of the housing 35. The transverse width of the housing 35 is such that the rod 33 fits snugly within the same, and,'by this arrangement, the sides of the member 35 cooperate with the opening 38 to brace the rod 33 and enable it to endure the strains to which it will be sub-' jected when the seat is in use.

The floor 1 of the body B is slotted longitudinally as at 36 to receive the rod 33 when the seat is in its lowered position. The forward portion of the slot is formed by cutting the floor and bending the edges downwardly to form flanges 36 which aid materially in strengthening the body B of the car. The rear of the slot 36 is cut out as at 36 immediately over the member 35, and the eeann? the seat may be lowered into inoperative L position by raising it sufficiently to disengage the lower end of the rod 33 from the opening 38 and to allow it to move forward to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. When,,however, it is desiredvto use the seat, it is raised until the lower end comes in contact with the guide or stop 39 and then it will drop bv gravity into the opening 38 and be locked in its upright position. It should be noted that by providing the downwardly-turned flanges 22, T form a housing for the rollers, the brake block and the seat-locking means, and that by bracing the flange at the forward and rear ends, respectivelv. the whole structure is made rigid and durable and capable of withstanding the rough usage common to this sort of car. It should be noted that the flanges depend a distance below the top of the wheels or rollers, thereby also acting as a guard to prevent the clothes of the occupant of the vehicle from becoming entangled in these rollers.

It should also be noted that the car may be used in a way similar to either of the two classes of popular juvenile cars now on the market. The first ofthese classes embodies the type of car which has a seat and is propelled by the occupant straddling the seat and using one or both feet to propel the vehicle while sitting on the seat. The other class embodies the type of car in which no seat is used but in which the occupant stands upon the vehicle with one foot and pushes 0r shoves the vehicle around with the other foot.

It will be seen that when the seat is in its operative position, the car may be used as are those in the first class above-mentioned, while, when it is desired to use it without the seat, the same may be thrown forward and out of the way and the vehicle used as are those in the second class above-mentioned.

This versatility of the vehicle is of extreme importance.

The nature and scope of the invention having been thus indicated and its preferred embodiment having been specifically described, what is claimed as new is:

1. In a juvenile vehicle, a body formed by bending sheet metal in a substantially U shape to form depending flanges, a rear wheel-supporting rod secured transversely of said body and rigidly to said flanges, and a brake-supporting rod rigidly secured to said flanges transversely of said body and at the forward end thereof.

2. In a, juvenile vehicle of the class described, a body, wheels carried by said body, a seat and a seat-supporting and locking means comprising a substantially U-shaped member secured upon the under side of said body, a transverse pivot for said seat mounted in vertical slots formed in the sidesof said U-shaped member, the bottom of said U-shaped member being opening adapted to receive the lower end of a seat-supporting rod, and a guide stop formed adjacent one side of said opening, as and for the purpose set forth.

3.1m a juvenile vehicle, a body, groundengaging means rigidly supported at the rear end of said body,.a steering rod vertically mounted at the forward end thereof and extending above and below said body,-

a housing vertically disposed at the forward end of said body and adapted to receive and support said rod, a base-flange formed upon said housing, a plate cooperating with said base-flange to clamp together said body and housing, a yoke carried by the lower end of said rod, means carried by said rod and bearing against the vertical sides of said yoke for locking said yoke to provided with an said rod, and ground-engaging means carried by said yoke.

4. In a juvenile vehicle uf the class described, a body, ground-engaging devices carried by said body, a seat and a seat-supporting and locking means comprising a housing, means for movably pivoting said seat-support whereby the same may drop by gravity in a vertical position to locked position, and means for holding said support in vertical position when dropped to locked position.

5. In a juvenile vehicle of the class described, a body, wheels carried by said body, a seat and a seat-supporting and locking means comprising a member secured upon the under side of said body, a pivot for said seat mounted in vertical slots formed in said member, said member being provided with; an opening adapted to receive the lower end of a seat-supporting .rod, and a guide-stop formed adjacent one side of said signature.

HENRY E. MOOMAW.

opening, as and for the purpose set forth. 

